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Wednesday, September 16, 2015

57th Voucher School Terminated and $176 million of Taxpayer money wasted...and counting.

The Milwaukee school voucher program has been around now for a quarter of a century, and it's still not working. But because it's a potential profit center for every voucher campaign donor drooling over the deep pockets of state taxpayers, Republicans will continue to shovel more of our money their way.

Instead of getting tough on voucher schools, something they were never really serious about, Republicans have been expanding the program with empty promises of accountability.

We're also finding out voucher schools aren't actually a public investment, they're a private one, sucking millions of dollars out of the state. And sudden voucher school closings have left hundreds of students and parents scrambling to find an alternative, often times over a weekend. Chalk up another one:

jsonline: The closing of another Milwaukee voucher school prompted
Democratic lawmakers on Tuesday to renew their calls for greater accountability
for private schools.Daughters of the Father Christian Academy closed
Thursday ... had received about $5.4 million in public money since the 2007-'08
academic year, would be the 57th terminated from the voucher program by
the Department of Public Instruction since the 2003-'04 academic year. Those
schools had been paid a total of $176 million.

You might want to ask Republican lawmakers what made the following example a smart taxpayer "investment:"

The school's executive director,
Doris Pinkney, had operated a day care center since 2002. Her state
license was revoked in 2010 by the Department of Children and Families for
numerous violations. Pinkney filed for bankruptcy three times since 1995, most
recently in April.

“Wisconsin Republican model "choice" school closes 9 days
into the school year, leaving all of their kids stranded. The Republicans in WI
have handed them an unaccountable $5.4 Million taxpayer dollars(for comparison,
we are cutting $855,000 this year).Crickets from anyone on the right as they continue sending
schools like this our valuable education funds!

This is what happens when we "balance" business with public policy; the public always loses.

Voucher plan morphed into GOP Weapon against Education, Teachers and Unions: Scott Walker named Howard Fuller, an early advocate of the Milwaukee voucher program, as a major influence. Yet Fuller denounced what the Republicans have turned it into to, and didn't appreciate what Walker said.

One of Scott Walker's educational role models doesn't agree with him: on August 20, 2015 ... Howard Fuller, said (he) took to Twitter after Walker’s comments to make it clear he doesn’t agree with Walker on some education issues ... Fuller supports the Common Core academic standards, which Walker opposes, and opposes expanding school vouchers to students who aren’t from low-income households, which Walker supports and has pushed in two budgets during his tenure as governor.“Scott Walker and I have fought together for parent choice over the years, but I do not support universal vouchers,” Fuller tweeted Wednesday afternoon. “I am against voter ID, I support raising minimum wage. I do not support drug testing for people on welfare. I support Obamacare, I support the common core, I support #BlackLivesMatter. I am neither a republican or democrat. I don’t want any of my friends trying to stand up for me. I speak for myself. Always have and always will.”

This is not a new position by Fuller. Back in April 2011, Fuller voiced his dissatisfaction, but no one seemed to notice:

Howard Fuller calls choice plans 'egregious' and 'outrageous' ... Fuller shook up the hearing on the state budget by calling a proposed change to choice “egregious” and “outrageous.”He also said he’d oppose the Milwaukee choice program if the change – phasing out income limits for participating Milwaukee families – went into effect.If that happens, he said in an interview after the testimony, “This is when I get off the train.”